Microsoft Flight Simulator

# Microsoft Flight Simulator — Intel Core i5-13400F + NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 SUPER

The Intel Core i5-13400F paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 SUPER delivers a playable but resolution-sensitive experience in Microsoft Flight Simulator. Across all tested settings, the combo achieves an average FPS ranging from 33 at 4K Ultra to 101 at 1080p Low, placing it at rank 2571 out of 3714 tested combinations. The data indicates a system that can handle the simulator at mainstream resolutions and settings, but one that requires careful tuning for high-refresh or high-fidelity scenarios.

FAQ

Q: What is the best resolution for this combo in Microsoft Flight Simulator?

A: The data shows 1920x1080 as the most consistent performer, with average FPS ranging from 56 at Ultra to 101 at Low. At 2560x1440, averages drop to 45–81, while 3840x2160 yields only 33–60 depending on settings.

Q: How does the RTX 2060 SUPER compare to its closest GPU rivals?

A: The GPU sits at the 62nd percentile among all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 18093. Its nearest rival, the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 Mobile, scores 18159 (0.4% higher), while the AMD Radeon RX 460 scores 18373 (1.5% higher), indicating near-parity with these peers.

Q: Is the Intel Core i5-13400F a strong CPU for this game?

A: The CPU ranks in the 77th percentile among all CPUs, with a Cinebench R23 multicore score of 22604 and a single-core score of 3191. Given that Microsoft Flight Simulator relies heavily on single-thread performance, the 3191 single-core result suggests adequate headroom for the GPU in most scenarios.

Q: What is the combo's overall standing among tested systems?

A: The combo ranks 2571st out of 3714 total combinations in this game, placing it in the lower third of tested configs. This reflects the GPU's mid-range positioning rather than a CPU bottleneck, as the processor outperforms many rivals.

Q: Does the system maintain smooth frame rates at 4K?

A: At 3840x2160, only the Low preset achieves 60 FPS average. Medium yields 47 FPS, High drops to 35, and Ultra falls to 33. The data suggests 4K is only viable at minimal settings for this combination.

Q: How much headroom does the CPU have relative to the GPU?

A: The i5-13400F's average benchmark score of 25292 is nearly identical to its closest rival, the AMD Ryzen 9 6900HS (25284, 0% delta), while the GPU's score trails its nearest rival by 0.4%. The CPU's percentile ranking (77th) far exceeds the GPU's (62nd), indicating the graphics card is the limiting factor.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 SUPER features 8 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 256-bit bus, delivering 448.0 GB/s of bandwidth. With a base clock of 1470 MHz and a boost clock of 1650 MHz, the card operates at 7.181 TFLOPS FP32 performance. These specifications place the GPU at the 62nd percentile overall, with an average benchmark score of 18093.

In Microsoft Flight Simulator specifically, the GPU's memory capacity and bandwidth prove critical. The simulator's high-resolution textures and complex scenery demand substantial VRAM, and the 8 GB allocation is sufficient for 1080p and 1440p presets but becomes strained at 4K. The measured data reflects this: at 3840x2160, the gap between Low (60 FPS) and Ultra (33 FPS) is 27 FPS, a 45% drop that indicates the GPU's shading and memory subsystems are overwhelmed by the highest detail settings.

The card's 2176 shading units and 64 ROPs handle the game's draw calls efficiently at lower resolutions, but the 448.0 GB/s bandwidth appears to be a limiting factor when the render target scales to 4K. Notably, the RTX 2060 SUPER's nearest rivals—the RTX 3060 Mobile (18159, -0.4%) and AMD Radeon RX 460 (18373, -1.5%)—have similar average scores, yet the measured FPS in this game suggests the desktop 2060 SUPER's sustained clock behavior gives it an edge in prolonged sessions.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the Intel Core i5-13400F and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 SUPER ranks 2571st out of 3714 tested combos in Microsoft Flight Simulator. This places the system in the 31st percentile of all configurations, meaning roughly 69% of tested combos perform better in this specific title.

This ranking is primarily driven by the GPU's mid-tier standing. The RTX 2060 SUPER's 62nd percentile position among all GPUs translates to a system that can run the game, but not at the highest visual fidelity. The CPU, by contrast, ranks in the 77th percentile, with an average benchmark score of 25292 that nearly matches the AMD Ryzen 9 6900HS (25284, 0% delta) and slightly trails the Intel Core 5 120 (25362, -0.3%).

The rank disparity between the two components is telling: the i5-13400F is a strong processor that would not bottleneck most mid-range GPUs, yet the RTX 2060 SUPER's performance ceiling caps the overall system. In a simulator like Microsoft Flight Simulator, which is known to stress both CPU and GPU depending on scenario, this combo lands in the lower third because the GPU cannot sustain high frame rates at demanding settings, particularly at higher resolutions.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS data, the optimal balance of visual quality and performance occurs at 1920x1080 with the High preset. This configuration delivers 59 FPS average, which is just below the 60 FPS threshold typically desired for smooth gameplay. The Medium preset at 1080p provides 78 FPS with a minimum of 67 and maximum of 90, offering a comfortable margin above 60 FPS while still maintaining reasonable visual fidelity.

For users prioritizing frame rate stability, the 1440p Medium preset is the best choice, yielding 63 FPS with a minimum of 54 and maximum of 73. This provides a playable experience with better image clarity than 1080p, though the minimum FPS dips below 60, which may cause noticeable stutters during complex scenes.

At 4K, the data shows that only the Low preset achieves a playable 60 FPS average. The Medium preset at 3840x2160 drops to 47 FPS (minimum 40, maximum 54), which is borderline for a flight simulator where smooth camera panning is essential. The High and Ultra presets at 4K produce 35 and 33 FPS respectively, making them unsuitable for sustained gameplay. The recommendation is to use 1440p Medium as the best compromise, or 1080p High if visual fidelity takes priority over resolution.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the combo delivers its strongest performance. The Low preset averages 101 FPS, providing a high-refresh experience. Medium averages 78 FPS with a range of 67 to 90, while High averages 59 FPS. The Ultra preset yields 56 FPS, which is the lowest result at this resolution but still technically playable.

Moving to 2560x1440, the performance drops noticeably. Low averages 81 FPS, still smooth, while Medium averages 63 FPS (minimum 54, maximum 73). High drops to 47 FPS, and Ultra falls to 45 FPS. The transition from 1080p to 1440p reduces average FPS by approximately 20% at Low settings and 24% at High settings, indicating the GPU's pixel throughput is a limiting factor.

At 3840x2160, the results show a significant scaling penalty. Low averages 60 FPS, which is the only preset to hit the 60 FPS target. Medium averages 47 FPS (minimum 40, maximum 54), High averages 35 FPS, and Ultra averages 33 FPS. The 4K Ultra result represents a 67% drop from the 1080p Ultra result, demonstrating that the RTX 2060 SUPER's 448.0 GB/s bandwidth and 7.181 TFLOPS compute are insufficient for the highest resolutions at maximum settings.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i5-13400F is a 10-core, 16-thread processor based on the Raptor Lake architecture, manufactured on Intel's 10 nm process. It operates at a base clock of 2.50 GHz and boosts to 4.60 GHz, with 20 MB of shared L3 cache. Its single-thread benchmark results are particularly relevant for Microsoft Flight Simulator: a Geekbench single-core score of 1996 and a Cinebench R23 single-core score of 3191.

The CPU's 77th percentile ranking among all processors reflects its strong multi-threaded capabilities, evidenced by a Passmark multithread score of 25032 and a Cinebench R23 multicore score of 22604. However, in this game, the single-thread performance is more critical, as flight simulators often rely on a primary rendering thread. The 3191 single-core score in Cinebench R23 places the i5-13400F comfortably ahead of many older processors, but the measured FPS data suggests the GPU becomes the bottleneck before CPU limitations emerge.

The CPU's closest rivals include the AMD Ryzen 9 6900HS (25284, 0% delta), Intel Core 5 120 (25362, -0.3%), and AMD Ryzen 5 5600X3D (25365, -0.3%). These near-identical average scores indicate that the i5-13400F offers competitive performance within its segment, but none of these processors would meaningfully change the FPS results in this combo, as the RTX 2060 SUPER is clearly the constraining component.

Resolution Scaling

The FPS data reveals a clear scaling pattern as resolution increases from 1080p to 4K. At Low settings, the average FPS drops from 101 at 1920x1080 to 81 at 2560x1440 (a 20% decrease), then to 60 at 3840x2160 (a 41% total decrease from 1080p). At Medium settings, the progression is 78 to 63 to 47, representing a 24% drop from 1080p to 1440p and a further 25% drop from 1440p to 4K, totaling a 40% reduction from the baseline.

At High settings, the FPS drops from 59 at 1080p to 47 at 1440p (a 20% decrease) and then to 35 at 4K (a 41% total decrease). Ultra settings follow a similar pattern: 56 to 45 to 33, with a 20% drop from 1080p to 1440p and a 41% total drop at 4K.

This consistent scaling pattern—approximately 20% penalty from 1080p to 1440p and an additional 25-30% penalty from 1440p to 4K—indicates that the GPU is the primary limiting factor across all resolutions. If the CPU were the bottleneck, the FPS would remain relatively flat as resolution increases, since the CPU workload would stay constant while the GPU workload grows. Instead, the steady decline in FPS with each resolution step confirms that the RTX 2060 SUPER's pixel fill rate and memory bandwidth are the constraining resources, particularly at 4K where the 256-bit memory bus and 448.0 GB/s bandwidth struggle to feed the render output.

The data also shows that the gap between Low and Ultra settings widens with resolution: at 1080p, the difference is 45 FPS (101 vs 56), while at 4K, it is 27 FPS (60 vs 33). This suggests that at lower resolutions, the CPU can help maintain higher frame rates even at Ultra settings, but at 4K, the GPU's limitations dominate regardless of the CPU's capability. For users seeking smoother performance at higher resolutions, reducing settings to Medium or Low provides the most significant gains, as the data shows a 27% improvement from High to Medium at 1440p and a 71% improvement from Ultra to Low at 1080p.